Leaf compactor and baler

ABSTRACT

An apparatus  10  for compacting and baling leaves, grass clippings, sticks, pine straw and other debris on lawns, yards, or fields is provided. The apparatus  10  may have diagonal brushes  26  to gather debris for processing though a crusher  28,  a conveyor belt  30  to transport the crushed debris, and a baler  32  to compact and bale the debris. The baler  32  may compact the debris by rotating the debris in a continuous band  52,  into which baling material  72  may be inserted to bale the debris. Alternatively, the debris may be gathered and feed into a crusher  28  that deposits the crushed debris directly into the baler  32  for compacting and baling. Further still, the apparatus  10  may gather the debris with brushes  26  and feed it onto a conveyor mechanism  30  that then introduces it into a crusher  28.  The crushed debris may then be feed into a baling mechanism  32  that compacts and bales the debris for easy removal and disposal. In its various embodiments, the present invention may be connected to a prime mover  20  or alternatively connected to a portable base with a motor for driving the device  10.

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation-in-Part of and claims priority toNon-Provisional Patent Application, U.S. Ser. No., 09/971,402, entitled“Leaf Compactor and Baler” filed Oct. 5, 2001, now abandoned, which isfully incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

This invention relates to leaf gathering machines and to leaf balersand, more particularly, to an apparatus that will gather, crush,compress, and bale leaves and other debris.

2. Technical Background

The gathering and disposal of leaves is an essential activity tomaintain the cleanliness and appearance of a variety of public lands,golf courses, and homes, including lawns and natural areas. Leafgathering and disposal usually occurs in the fall in the northernhemisphere but can occur at other times of the year if plant-likematerial accumulates, such as pine cones, pine needles, tall grasses,shrubbery, weeds, and the like. Leaves and other related yard debris areusually separated from garbage and general household trash. Leaves andother yard debris can be used for composting so that landfill space isreserved for trash that is not suitable for composting. A common methodof gathering and disposing of leaves by homeowners is to rake the leavesand to place them into trash bags, which is a burdensome chore. Rakingleaves, picking them up, and placing them in bags is stressful work andis often beyond the ability of many older individuals or individualswith compromised health.

In some communities, the homeowners can rake leaves into a pile on theside of the street. Generally the leaves and other yard materials aredeposited in a window adjacent to or on the edge of the street. Avehicle with a collection bin and a vacuum pickup the leaves and yarddebris and hold these materials in a bin. The vacuum pickup is usuallymanipulated manually while gathering leaves. The bin tends to fillrapidly because in this process the leaves are not compressed. When thebin is fill, the machine stops gathering leaves and moves to a disposalsite or transfer station where the bin is unloaded. During transport andunloading, the machine is not available to pickup leaves, which limitsthe rate at which leaves can be picked up and removed throughout theday.

Full capacity bagger attachments are known for use on lawn movingmachines. Some or these employ an auger to feed leaf material into a bagand compress the material in the bag. These mowing machines have limitedcapacity to pickup leaves. They are slow and frequently plug withleaves. Once the bag is full, the mowing machine is stopped, theoperator dismounts from the machine, closes the bag manually, removesthe filled bag from the machines, mounts an empty bag in position to befilled, and then returns to the machine to resume the leaf baggingoperation. The stationary bagging machines and the bagger attachmentsfor lawn mowing machines fill relatively small bags. All bags arehandled manually after they are filled. The major drawbacks of thesebagging machine systems are the cost of the bags and the fact that thesystems can be relatively labor intensive.

Full capacity machines are known which will gather leaves, shred theleaves, deposit the leaves to an auger, and the auger will direct theleaves to a bag. In these machines, the leaf gathering mechanism is apaddle like device and the shredder employs knife-like elements. Thedrawbacks of devices such as these are that sticks and similar debrisamongst the leaves can cause the gathering mechanism or the shredder tojam. Sticks and the like can also jam between the auger and its housing.The present invention overcomes these drawbacks by providing a leafgathering, crushing, compacting, and baling system which does notrequire the use of an auger and will bale the leaves automaticallywithout the use of a bag.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention recognizes and addresses various of the foregoinglimitations and drawbacks, and others, concerning leaf and debrisgathering and bagging apparatuses. Therefore, the present invention isdirected to a leaf gathering and baling apparatus which compacts theleaves and related debris by crushing and compressing the debris.

A first advantage of the present invention is that it crushes leaves,sticks, pine straw, pinecones and related debris on lawns, yards, andfields. Yet another advantage of the present invention is that it hasunlimited capacity because it continuously bales and eliminates leaves.In such context, the present invention produces bales that can beconveniently lifted and carried.

Still another advantage of the present invention is that itautomatically gathers leaves thereby avoiding raking. Further, anotheradvantage of the present invention is that it is hydraulically driven.Still further, another advantage of the present invention is that itdoes not have augers which require a housing.

Another advantage of the present invention is that it is removablyattachable to a prime mover. Finally, another advantage of the presentinvention is that can be used without the compactor and baler to producemulch.

In one exemplary embodiment, there may be provided a gathering andbaling apparatus capable of crushing sticks and similar materialassociated with the leaves. The apparatus is reversibly attached to aprime mover that can move the apparatus across lawns and fields asneeded. In a first embodiment of the present invention, the frontportion of the apparatus may have brushes extending diagonally at anangle to the centerline of the apparatus. The brushes roll inwardly ontheir bottom edges to gather leaves towards the front of the apparatus.The roller brushes direct and lift the leaves to a crusher. The crusherhas one or more pairs of crushing rollers. Each crushing roller in apair has crushing vanes and the crushing vane of one crushing rollerinter-digitate or meshes with the crushing vane of the other crushingroller. The crushing rollers are driven by a motor to rotate towards oneanother so that the leaves and sticks and related debris from thebrushes will be fed into the crushing roller pair and be crushed by thecrushing vanes as the crushing rollers rotate. Crushed material can passthrough one or more additional pairs of like crushing rollers, but willeventually fall and be pushed to the bottom of the crusher where it willbe forced out of the crusher by a similar pair of crushing rollers withcrushing vanes and be deposited onto a conveyor mechanism. The conveyormechanism moves the crushed debris to a baler assembly. The balerassembly has two compacting rollers contained within a continuous band.One of the baler assembly compacting rollers is fixed and the othercompacting roller is movable. When the movable compacting roller ismoved away from the fixed compacting roller, the band can receive thecrushed debris from the conveyor mechanism. Once the crushed debris isdeposited on the band, the adjustable compacting roller is moved towardthe fixed compacting roller, thereby compressing the debris further. Thecompacting rollers are rotated in the same direction by motors, causingthe crushed compressed debris to rotate within the band. As the crusheddebris rotates within the band, baling material such as paper isinserted between the compacting rollers and is directed by the movingband around the rotating debris. The paper tightly encircles therotating debris, thus baling it. The movable roller within the compactoris moved away from the fixed roller, the baler assembly is rotated, andthe baled debris is expelled. This sequence of gathering, crushing,conveying, compacting, and baling debris is produced continuously andautomatically as the apparatus moves forward gathering leaves.

In a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the frontportion of the apparatus may be brushes extending diagonally at an angleto the centerline of the apparatus. The brushes roll inwardly on theirbottom edges to gather leaves towards the front of the apparatus. Theroller brushes direct and lift the leaves to a conveyor mechanism. Theconveyor mechanism moves the crushed debris to a crusher. The crusherhas one or more pairs of crushing rollers. Each crushing roller in apair has crushing vanes and the crushing vane of one crushing rollerinter-digitate or meshes with the crushing vane of the other crushingroller. The crushing rollers are driven by a motor to rotate towards oneanother so that the leaves and sticks and related debris from thebrushes will be fed into the crushing roller pair and be crushed by thecrushing vanes as the crushing rollers rotate. Crushed material can passthrough one or more additional pairs of like crushing rollers, but willeventually fall and be pushed to the bottom of the crusher where it willbe forced out of the crusher by a similar pair of crushing rollers withcrushing vanes and be deposited into a baler assembly. The balerassembly has two compacting rollers contained within a continuous band.One of the baler assembly compacting rollers is fixed and the othercompacting roller is movable. When the movable compacting roller ismoved away from the fixed compacting roller, the band can receive thecrushed debris from the conveyor mechanism. Once the crushed debris isdeposited on the band, the adjustable compacting roller is moved towardthe fixed compacting roller, thereby compressing the debris further. Thecompacting rollers are rotated in the same direction by motors, causingthe crushed compressed debris to rotate within the band. As the crusheddebris rotates within the band, baling material, such as paper isinserted between the compacting rollers and is directed by the movingband around the rotating debris. The paper tightly encircles therotating debris, thus baling it. The movable roller within the compactoris moved away from the fixed roller, the baler assembly is rotated, andthe baled debris is expelled. This sequence of gathering, conveying,crushing, compacting, and baling debris is produced continuously andautomatically as the apparatus moves forward gathering leaves.

In a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the apparatusis attached to a prime mover, such as a lawn mower base. Unlike theother alternative embodiments, the present embodiment lacks brushesextending diagonally at an angle to the centerline of the apparatus forthe collection of debris. In the present embodiment, debris is manuallyintroduced by the operator into the crusher. The crusher has one or morepairs of crushing rollers. Each crushing roller in a pair has crushingvanes and the crushing vane of one crushing roller interdigitate ormeshes with the crushing vane of the other crushing roller. The crushingrollers are driven by a motor to rotate towards one another so that theleaves and sticks and related debris from the brushes will be fed intothe crushing roller pair and be crushed by the crushing vanes as thecrushing rollers rotate. Crushed material can pass through one or moreadditional pairs of like crushing rollers, but will eventually fall andbe pushed to the bottom of the crusher where it will be forced out ofthe crusher by a similar pair of crushing rollers with crushing vanesand be deposited into a baler assembly. The baler assembly has twocompacting rollers contained within a continuous band. One of the balerassembly compacting rollers is fixed and the other compacting roller ismovable. When the movable compacting roller is moved away from the fixedcompacting roller, the band can receive the crushed debris from theconveyor mechanism. Once the crushed debris is deposited on the band,the adjustable compacting roller is moved toward the fixed compactingroller, thereby compressing the debris further. The compacting rollersare rotated in the same direction by motors, causing the crushedcompressed debris to rotate within the band. As the crushed debrisrotates within the band, baling material, such as paper is insertedbetween the compacting rollers and is directed by the moving band aroundthe rotating debris. The paper tightly encircles the rotating debris,thus baling it. The movable roller within the compactor is moved awayfrom the fixed roller, the baler assembly is rotated, and the baleddebris is expelled. The crushing, compacting, and baling sequence isguided by the user during the operation of the apparatus. The presentembodiment is significantly smaller in size than the alternativeembodiments and while motor driven is primarily manual in its continuousoperation.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention are set forth in, orwill be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art from the detaileddescription as follows. Also, it should be further appreciated thatmodifications and variations to the specifically illustrated anddiscussed features and materials hereof may be-practiced in variousembodiments and uses of this invention without departing from the spiritand scope thereof, by virtue of present reference thereto. Suchvariations may include, but are not limited to, substitutions of theequivalent means, features, and materials for those shown or discussed,and the functional or positional reversal of various parts, features, orthe like.

Still further, it is to be understood that different embodiments, aswell as different presently preferred embodiments, of this invention,may include various combinations or configurations of presentlydisclosed features, elements, or their equivalents (includingcombinations of features or configurations thereof not expressly shownin the figures or stated in the detailed description).

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the presentinvention will become better understood with reference to the followingdescriptions and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which areincorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustratean embodiment of the invention and, together with the descriptions,serve to explain the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A fill and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including thebest mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is setforth in the specification, which makes reference to the appendedfigures, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the leaf compacting and baling apparatus of thepresent invention attached to a prime mover;

FIG. 2 is a top view of a first embodiment of the present inventionattached to a prime mover;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the present inventionas depicted in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a top view of a first embodiment of the present inventionshowing a brush, the crusher assembly and the conveyor mechanism of theembodiment as depicted in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5A is a perspective view of the crusher rollers of the crusherassembly;

FIG. 5B is a perspective view of the scissoring roller of the crusherassembly;

FIG. 6A is a top view of the baler assembly of the present invention isan open position without the continuous band;

FIG. 6B is a right side perspective view of the baler assembly of thepresent invention in an open position without the continuous band;

FIG. 7A is a side view of the main drive gear of the baler assemblyincluding the baling rollers and the continuous band in an openposition;

FIG. 7B is a side view of the main drive gear of the baler assemblyincluding the baling rollers with the spring-loaded positioning armholding the moveable baling roller in the open position;

FIG. 8A is a rear perspective view of the baler assembly of the presentinvention in a closed position as seen without the continuous balingband;

FIG. 8B is a right side perspective view of the baler assembly of thepresent invention in a closed position as seen without the continuousbaling band;

FIG. 9A is a side view of the main drive gear of the baler assemblyincluding the baling rollers, the continuous band in a closed positionand the debris within the band for compacting and baling;

FIG. 9B is a side view of the main drive gear of the baler assemblyincluding the baling rollers with the tensioned spring-loadedpositioning arm allowing the moveable baler roller to be in the closedposition;

FIG. 10A is a top view of the baler assembly of the present invention inthe dumping position; and

FIG. 10B is a side view of the main drive gear of the baler mechanismincluding the baler rollers and the continuous band in an open dumpingposition expelling a bale of leaves and other debris.

Repeat use of reference characters throughout the present specificationand appended drawings is intended to represent the same or analogousfeatures or elements of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to presently preferred embodimentsof the invention, examples of which are fully represented in theaccompanying drawings. Such examples are provided by way of anexplanation of the invention, not limitation thereof. In fact, it willbe apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications andvariations can be made in the present invention, without departing fromthe spirit and scope thereof. For instance, features illustrated ordescribed as part of one embodiment can be used on another embodiment toyield a still further embodiment. Still further, variations in selectionof materials and/or characteristics may be practiced, to satisfyparticular desired user criteria. Thus, it is intended that the presentinvention cover such modifications and variations as come within thescope of the present features and their equivalents.

FIG. 1 depicts a side view of the leaf/debris collecting, crushing, andcompacting and baling apparatus 10 of the present invention. Theapparatus is attached to the front end of a prime mover 20. The primemover 20 has an internal combustion engine 22 that provides power todrive its rear wheels 24 and to provide power to the hydraulic motorsthat run the various components of the present invention. The apparatus10 has at least one leaf/debris gathering assembly 26, a leaf/debriscrusher assembly 28, a leaf/debris conveyor assembly 30 and aleaf/debris baler assembly 32.

As shown in FIG. 2, the apparatus 10 may include a plurality ofdebris-gathering assemblies 26. Such assemblies 26 may extend in aforward, diagonal direction at the front of the crusher assembly 28 (asshown) and may include debris-gathering brushes 34 mounted on respectivebrush frames. Debris-gathering assemblies 26 are supported at the frontand back ends by rollers mounted to their brush frames. Thedebris-gathering assemblies 26, as well as a primary gathering brush 36centrally located at the leading edge of the crusher assembly 28, feedthe debris into the crusher assembly 28. The crusher assembly 28consists of at least one pair of crushing rollers 38 and a scissoringroller 40. The crusher's rollers 38 and 40 are driven by a hydraulicmotor and chain attached to the crusher assembly 28.

From the crusher assembly 28 the debris is fed onto a conveyor assembly30. The conveyor assembly 30 has a continuous conveyor belt 44 supportedby multiple rollers, and finger like projections 46 on said conveyorbelt 44. The conveyor assembly 30 is supported at its front end byattachment to the crusher assembly 28 and brush frames and at its backend by attachment to the prime mover 20. Hydraulic motors power theplurality of brushes 34, the rotation of the crusher rollers 38 and 40and also drive the conveyor belt 44.

The baler assembly 32 is located at the distal end of the conveyor belt44. The baler assembly 32 consists of a fixed position baling roller 48and a movable baling roller 50 (as best seen in FIGS. 7A-10B). Thebaling rollers 48 and 50 are contained within a continuous baling band52. The baling assembly 32 is attached to the prime mover 20 by suitableframing. The compacting and baling apparatus 10 also has a balingmaterial feed assembly that feeds baling material into the baling band52. The baling material 72 binds and retains the crushed and compacteddebris in a small, lightweight roll. The baler assembly 32 is capable ofrotating to eject the completed bale by way of a hole 64 in theunderside of the baler assembly 32 (as best seen in FIG. 8B).

FIG. 2 shows a diagrammatic top view of leaf compacting and balingapparatus 10 attached to a prime mover 20. Although leaf gatheringbrushes 34 extend forward of crusher assembly 28, they project at anangle from the crusher assembly 28, preferably about thirty-fivedegrees. The bottom (ground) edges of leaf gathering brushes 34 arerotated by hydraulic motors inward towards the center line of thecrusher assembly 28 to gather leaves towards the primary gathering brush36 which lifts them upwardly into the crusher assembly 28 as the primemover 20 moves the apparatus 10 forward.

As best seen in FIGS. 2-4, once gathered by the debris-gatheringassemblies 26 toward the centerline of the crusher assembly 28, theleaves and other debris may be lifted into the crusher assembly 28 bythe primary gathering brush 36, which similarly rotates so as to liftthe debris and deposit it into the front of the crusher assembly 28.After passage through the crusher assembly 28, the now crushedleaves/debris is deposited onto the conveyor belt 44. The continuousconveyor belt 44 of the conveyor assembly 30 includes numerousfinger-like projections 46 for aiding in lifting the crushed debris upthe inclined conveyor belt 44. These projections 46 lift the debris fromthe crusher assembly 28 to the conveyor belt 44 as they move from theunderside of the conveyor assembly 30 to the topside. As the finger-likeprojections 46 move from the top to the bottom side of the conveyorassembly 30 they facilitate depositing the crushed debris into the balerassembly 32.

While the dimensions of the present invention form no particular aspectof the invention, the relative size of the various components may giverise to a better understanding of the capacity of the present inventionto deal with a generally understood quantity of yard waste. To such end,the finger-like projections 46 of the conveyor assembly 30 may begenerally between about 1 to 8 inches in length, most preferably about 2inches in length and may be separated along the conveyor belt 44generally between about 1 to 12 inches apart, most preferably about 8inches apart. The debris-gathering brushes 26 may be between about 12 to96 inches in length, most preferably about 24 inches, and generallybetween about 3 to 36 inches in diameter, most preferably about 12inches in diameter. The upper surface of the conveyor belt 44 may bebetween about 24 to 96 inches in length, most preferably about 48inches, and may be generally between about 12 to 96 inches in width,most preferably about 24 inches.

FIGS. 5A and 5B depict an exemplary pair of crushing rollers 38 and ascissoring roller 40 of the crusher assembly 28, respectively. Theleaves/debris from the debris-gathering assemblies 26 and 36 are passedto the crushing rollers 38 of FIG. 5A. The crushing rollers 38 may havemultiple crushing vanes 58. The crushing vanes 58 on one member of theroller pair 38 mesh with the crushing vanes 58 of the other member ofthe roller pair 38 as they rotate in the same direction, but do nottouch. The leaves/debris are passed through the crushing vanes 58. Thatpart of the debris small enough to pass under the vanes 58 is pushedrearward to the scissoring roller 40. The remainder of the leaves/debrisare caught by the sharp edges of the crushing vanes 58 and circulatedtherethrough. The crushing vanes 58 will crush leaves, sticks, and otherdebris as the crushing rollers 38 rotate in the same direction and theleaves/debris pass through the crushing vanes 58. Eventually theprocessed leaves/debris are small enough to pass under the crushingvanes 58 and are passed on to the scissoring roller 40 by the in-comingdebris. In other words, the system is essentially self-feeding.

The scissoring roller 40, as depicted in FIG. 5B, is particularlyeffective in reducing the size of any fibrous debris material such aspine straw that was passed over by the crushing rollers 38. Thescissoring roller 40 is provided with a plurality of stationary cuttingvanes 60. Each of such cutting vanes 60 is associated with acorresponding rotating cutting vane 62 on the scissoring roller 40. Theplurality of paired vanes 60 and 62 on the scissoring roller 40 act as aplurality of scissors for cutting any material passed through them. Oncepassed through the scissoring roller 40 of the crusher assembly 28, theleaves/debris is then passed onto the conveyor belt 44 of the conveyorassembly 30 for transport to the baler assembly 32 for compaction andbaling by the dispensing paddles 42 attached to the shaft of thescissoring roller 40 and which are interdigitated between each of thestationary and rotating pairs of cutting vanes 60 and 62.

FIGS. 6A and 6B illustrate a top and a side perspective view of thebaler assembly 32 of the present invention without the continuous band52 that contains the crushed debris to be compacted and baled. Asillustrated, the baler assembly 32 is in an open configuration awaitingthe deposit of crushed material from the crusher assembly 28 via theconveyor assembly 32 comprises a fixed baling roller 48 and a movablebaling roller 50. Each end of the movable baling roller 50 passesthrough an opening 56 in its respective one of a set of paired maindrive gears 66. The pair of main drive gears 66 is primarily responsiblefor maintaining apart or bringing together the fixed and movable balingrollers 48 and 50 during the receipt and compacting/baling of crusheddebris, respectively. Additionally, the main drive gear 66 is used torotate the entire baler assembly 32 so as to expel the baled materialthrough an opening 64 in the underside of the baler assembly frame.

The fixed baling roller 48 is affixed to the paired main drive gears 66of the baler assembly 32 and move with the paired main drive gears 66 asthey rotate. Generally, when the fixed baling roller 48 is at or nearthe front of the baler assembly 32, the baler assembly 32 is consideredin the open position, as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B. When the fixed balingroller 48 is at or near the rear of the baler assembly 32, it is in adosed configuration.

The baling rollers 48 and 50 are contained within a continuous balingband 52. FIG. 7A shows continuous baling band 52 in position on thebaling rollers 48 and 50 in the open position. It is in thisconfiguration that the baler assembly 32 receives the crushedleaves/debris from the conveyor mechanism 30 into the continuous band52. When the baling rollers 48 and 50 rotate on their horizontal axesthe continuous band 52 similarly rotates in an identical direction. Thisis facilitated by the presence of a spring-biased friction roller 68that introduces and maintains a sufficient amount of friction so as toensure the movement of the continuous band 52 in coordination with themovement of the baling rollers 48 and 50. It is this movement, alongwith the closure of the band 52 (by way of the closure of the balingrollers 48 and 50), that causes compaction of the crushed debris.

FIG. 7B more clearly depicts the spring mechanism 74 that aidspositioning arm 70 in maintaining the moveable baling roller 50 in itopen position. The positioning arm 70 and the biased spring mechanism 74aid in keeping the moveable baling roller 50 in position as main drivegear 66 rotates counterclockwise to bring fixed baling roller 48 towardmoveable baling roller 50 in a closed configuration as best seen in FIG.9B.

FIGS. 8A and 8B depict 2 rear and side perspective views of the balerassembly 32 in its closed and compacting configuration without thecontinuous baling band 52. As can be seen the main drive gears 66 havebeen rotated counterclockwise to bring the fixed baling roller 48 intocommunication with the movable baling roller 50 thus closing the balerassembly 32. As before mentioned, closing baler assembly 32 compressesand further compacts the crushed leaves/debris. The fixed baling roller48 is free to rotate about its horizontal axis. A hydraulic motor andchain drive the movable baling roller 50. As the movable baling roller50 is rotated, the continuous baling band 52 rotates in the samedirection. The crushed compressed leaves also rotate but in the oppositedirection of baling rollers 48 and 50.

FIG. 9A further illustrates the containment of the crushed leaves/debriswithin the continuous baling band 52 while the baler assembly 32 is in aclosed configuration. Baling material 72, including, but not limited to,paper, may be inserted into the rotating baling band 52 between closedbaling rollers 48 and 50 to surround the crushed compressedleaves/debris. Through friction alone, the baling material 72 ismaintained along the continuous baling band 52 and thus encircles thecrushed, compacted leaves/debris. In so doing, the leaves/debris isbaled.

FIG. 9B shows that the movable baling roller 50 is biased toward theclosed position. When inverted (i.e., when the baler assembly 32 isrotated to expel a bale of crushed and compacted leaves/debris) themovable baling roller 50 is similarly biased toward the closed position.This is to ensure a more secure compaction, as well as for safety duringthe baling process. A spring-biased positioning arm 70 connects themovable roller 50 to the central axis of the main drive gears 66. Suchpositioning arm 70 aids in maintaining the proper motion of the movableroller 50 relative to the fixed roller 48 and the main drive gears 66during operation of the apparatus 10.

With the crushing, compaction and baling of the leaves/debris complete,there remains but one function for the apparatus 10 to perform—theexpulsion of the baled material from the baler assembly 32. FIG. 10Adepicts a top view of the baler assembly 32 with the continuous balingband 52 in a dumping configuration (i.e., baling rollers 48 and 50nearer bottom of baler assembly 32 and no material within the continuousbaling band 52). In this orientation, the baler assembly 32 has beenrotated almost 180 degrees about the central axis of the main drivegears 66 so as to allow the opening of the baling rollers 48 and 50 toexpel the baled material through an opening 64 in the bottom of thebaler assembly 32.

A motor (not shown) drives one of the paired main drive gears 66. Thesepowered main drive gears 66 have a track that moves movable balingroller 50 along its opening 56 as the main drive gears 66 rotate thebaler assembly 32. The opposing side of the baler assembly 32 houses areversable motor that turns a gear on the end of the movable balingroller 50. This reversible motor rotates movable baling roller 50, whichin conjunction with spring-biased friction roller 68, rotates thecontinuous baling band 52 and the fixed baling roller 48. As shown inFIG. 10B, the powered main drive gears 66 similarly are engaged torotate the entire assembly 32 in a closed position to face downward.Once rotated, the positioning arm 70 may aid in realigning the movablebaling roller 50 so as to open the baler assembly 32. The baledleaves/debris simply fall out of baler assembly 32. The expelled bales80 can fall to the ground or can fall into a bale catcher. Thedimensions of the bale are, preferably, about 24 inches in length andabout 8 inches in diameter. The baling material 72 is, preferably,paper. Such paper may have one end prepared with an adhesive for sealingsaid bales 80.

Although a preferred embodiment of the invention has been describedusing specific terms and devices, such description is for illustrativepurposes only. The words used are words of description rather than oflimitation. It is to be understood that changes and variations may bemade by those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from thespirit or the scope of the present invention, which is set forth in thefollowing claims. In addition, it should be understood that aspects ofvarious other embodiments may be interchanged both in whole or in part.Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appended claims should not belimited to the description of the preferred version contained herein.

1. A leaf and yard debris collection and baling apparatus, comprising:a) at least one brush for gathering said leaves and yard debris, saidbrush rotatably connected to a frame of said apparatus and rotating soas to direct said leaves and yard debris along the a centerline of saidapparatus; b) a crusher assembly, said crusher assembly comprising atleast one pair of crushing rollers rotatably connected to said frame ofsaid apparatus, each of said crushing roller rollers further comprisinga plurality of crushing vanes, a scissoring roller rotatable rotatablyconnected to said frame of said apparatus, said scissoring rollercomprising a plurality of paired scissoring vanes, wherein one of eachpaired scissoring vane of said plurality of paired scissoring vanes ishaving a stationary and its paired scissoring vane rotates cutting vaneand a rotating cutting vane, said rotating cutting vane is rotated bysaid scissoring roller and associated with said scissoring rollerstationary cutting vane to generate a scissoring action, and a pluralityof paddles rotatably connected to said frame of said apparatus andinterleaved between each of said plurality of paired scissoring vanes;c) a conveyor assembly, said conveyor assembly comprising a conveyorbelt, said conveyor belt including a plurality of finger-likeprojections to aid in maintaining said crushed leaves and yard debris onsaid conveyor belt; d) a baling assembly, said baling assemblycomprising a fixed baling roller, a moveable baling roller, wherein eachof said fixed and moveable baling rollers are rotatably connected tosaid frame of said apparatus and a continuous baling band located aboutsaid fixed and moveable baling rollers, and wherein said fixed andmoveable baling rollers serve to admit and maintain said crushed leavesand yard debris within said continuous baling band for additionalcompaction and baling.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein saidapparatus comprises at least one brush is three brushes: a primary brushand two secondary brushes and wherein said primary brash brush lies atthe a proximal end of said crushing assembly and such other gatheringbrushes are set at an angle to said apparatus' centerline of saidapparatus' so as to direct said leaves and yard debris toward theprimary brush.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said crushingrollers rotate in the same direction.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3,wherein said paddles serve to expel said crushed leaves and yard debrisonto said conveyor belt for transportation to said baler balingassembly.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said fixed baling rolleris affixed at each end to a pair of main drive gear assemblies and eachend of said moveable baling roller passes through an opening in one ofsaid paired main drive gear assemblies, and wherein said baling assemblyis opened and closed through the rotational motion of said main drivegear assemblies which either separate or bring together said fixed andmoveable baling rollers, respectively.
 6. The apparatus of claim 5,wherein a spring-biased friction roller holds the continuous baling bandtightly against the moveable baling roller and wherein as respective oneof said baling roller rollers rotate about their respective axes, saidspring-biased friction roller ensures said continuous baling bandsimilarly rotates about said baling rollers.
 7. The apparatus of claim6, wherein upon receipt of said leaves and yard debris, said paired maindrive gear are rotated so as to bring said fixed and moveable balingrollers together and close said continuous baling band about said leavesand yard debris and wherein baling material is introduced between saidfixed and moveable baling rollers into said leaves and yard debris so asto bale it within said baling material.
 8. The apparatus of claim 7,wherein said paired main drive gears are capable of rotating the balerassembly such that moving said fixed and moveable baling rollers apartallows the baled leaves and yard debris to fall out of said balerassembly.
 9. A yard waste gathering and baling apparatus, comprising: a)a crusher assembly; wherein said crusher assembly comprises comprisingat least one pair of crusher rollers which rotate in the same direction,each of said rollers having a corresponding set of interdigitatingcrushing vanes which rotate in the same direction , and at least onerotating scissoring roller, wherein said scissoring roller has having aplurality of paired scissoring vanes and wherein one of each pairedscissoring vane of said plurality of paired scissoring vanes iscomprising a rotating cutting vane and an associated stationary cuttingvane and its corresponding vane rotates wherein each said rotatingcutting vane is rotated with said scissoring roller to engage saidassociated stationary cutting vane to generate a scissoring action; b) abaling assembly, wherein said baling assembly further comprises acontinuous baling band for receipt of said crushed yard waste andwherein said yard waste is compacted and baled within said band; and c)wherein both of said crusher and baling assemblies are affixed within aframe of said apparatus.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein saidapparatus further comprises a plurality of brushes for gathering saidyard waste.
 11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein said crusher assemblyfurther comprises at least one scissoring roller with a plurality ofpaired fixed and rotatable scissoring vanes.
 12. The apparatus of claim11 9, wherein said baling assembly further comprises a fixed balingroller and a moveable baling roller within said continuous baling bandfor use in both maintaining open or dosing closing said band, as wellas, translating rotational motion to said band.
 13. The apparatus ofclaim 12, wherein said rotational motion is translated to saidcontinuous baling band by said fixed and moveable baling rollers withthe aid of a spring-biased friction roller, wherein said continuousbaling band is moved between said rotating fixed baling roller and saidspring-biased friction roller.
 14. The apparatus of claim 13, whereinfixed and moveable baling rollers may be brought together to close saidcontinuous baling band about said crushed yard waste and wherein balingmaterial may be introduced into said closed continuous band so as tobale said yard waste within said rotating continuous baling band. 15.The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said baling assembly may rotate toexpel the baled yard waste through an opening in the bottom of theassembly.
 16. A method of compacting and baling leaves and yard debris,comprising the steps of: a) gathering said leaves and yard debris; b)crushing said leaves and yard debris in a crusher assembly, wherein saidcrusher assembly comprises at least one pair of crushing rollers, eachof said rollers having a plurality of paired and corresponding crushingvanes and at least one scissoring roller, said at least one scissoringroller having a plurality of paired scissoring vanes, wherein one ofeach pair of said plurality of paired scissoring vanes is stationary andits corresponding vane rotates with comprising a rotating cutting vaneand a corresponding stationary cutting vane, and wherein each saidrotating cutting vane is rotated by said the scissoring roller; c)depositing said crushed leaves and yard debris into a baler assembly; d)compacting said crushed leaves and yard debris within a rotatingcontinuous baling band; and e) inserting baling material into saidrotating band to bale said crushed leaves and yard debris.
 17. Themethod of claim 16, further comprising the step of providing within saidrotating continuous baling band both a fixed and a moveable balingroller.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein said baling rollers togetherwith a spring-biased friction roller serve to introduce rotationalmotion to said rotating continuous band.